I just learned something remarkable: Ryan Vogelsong, professional pitcher for the San Francisco Giants, went to Octorara fucking High School. I get that this is not remarkable to most people, but you’ve got to understand that I was thisclose to going to Octorara. The Octorara school district encompasses the town that I technically grew up in (in the sense that our address was Cochranville). I am floored, you guys.

I think what’s weirdest to me, though, is that I only learned of this tonight. I knew that Vogelsong went to Kutztown and had briefly been in the Phillies’ system, but I’d had no idea that he and I had been fucking neighbors growing up. (Neighbors is probably stretching it, but you get the idea.) If I had gone to Octorara, he and I would’ve had one overlapping year of high school (his senior year/my freshman year). And here it is, 20 years later, and he couldn’t make it through six innings because the Phillies hit two home runs (thank you, Ryan Howard and Cody Asche).

I thought I would watch this whole game, but now I’m not so sure. I am definitely going to stop writing this post, though.

You know you’re getting burned out on your job when you freak out every time you hear the guy in the cube behind you breathe. (In my defense, the guy breathes unbelievably loudly. Like, I’m pretty sure he has some sort of significant health problem because healthy people don’t breathe that audibly.) And maybe “freak out” is the wrong verb; “cringe” might be better. I mean, I’m not yelling at this guy for breathing or anything like that.

These are the things I think about when I’m at work. Is it any wonder that watching baseball during my lunch is the highlight of my day?

Want proof that I spent very little time on the Internet this past week? I didn’t realize that the Dodgers-Diamondbacks series in Australia started “yesterday” until this afternoon. Normally I’d be all over MLB’s Opening Series, but I was oblivious. (Obviously I wouldn’t have watched the first game live because it started at, like, 5 AM here, but at least I would’ve known about it.)

I just watched most of the first game and am currently watching the second game live. There is Vin Scully on my TV! Calling a game that actually matters! The odds are very good that I’ll fall asleep during the game because I am super tired, but just the fact that it’s happening is such a comfort. Meaningful baseball will be back. Soon. Yay!

The Phillies play the Phillies tomorrow and I’m gonna be bummed out because a free (!) baseball game will be played at Bright House Field while I’m stuck in my office 15 miles away. I don’t really know what I’m gonna do when real spring training games start, either. I’ve been unemployed for the past two Spring Trainings, which allowed me to watch all the games live in their entirety. And it’s not like I care about the outcome of spring training games, but I want to watch baseball. Must watch baseball.

I should check that email I got about my MLB.tv subscription to see when the new version of At Bat will be available. Just thinking about MLB.tv and a new version of At Bat is making me feel all warm and fuzzy inside 🙂

Pitchers and catchers report on Tuesday or Wednesday (I forget which). I know pitchers and catchers is simultaneously exciting and boring, but at least it’s a tangible step towards baseball.

I can’t wait for baseball to come back. I currently have a reminder on my office calendar that just says “baseball.” Specifically, it’s set for the Phillies’ first spring training game, but I liked the simplicity of just putting “baseball” on my calendar. It makes me smile every time I’m in Outlook. And things that make me smile are good 🙂

Man, I miss everything while surrounded by morons at work all day. (I know I’m being a judgmental bitch, but I stand by my characterization. Last week a girl didn’t know who Nelson Mandela was. Today two people were flabbergasted that snow impacted football games in Philly, Baltimore, and DC but not north Jersey or New England.) I had no idea that Roy Halladay announced his retirement until 7 PM. When I saw the Phils doing “thanks for the memories, Doc” on Instagram I assumed he’d signed somewhere else; it wasn’t until I checked Facebook that I saw one of my friends say he’d retired.

I’m shocked Doc retired. Not on a recent performance basis (obviously), but because I always assumed he’d be the guy who stuck around too long. Professional athletes have a special brand of delusion that makes sense given what a career in professional sports is like, but does tend to cause guys to hang on well past their primes. (Maybe that’s harder for pitchers to do than hitters, but still.) And when you think about the adjectives used to describe Doc (such as intense and focused) it makes him seem like a prime candidate for that delusion. Kudos to Doc for being more self-aware than I’d expected.

I’m also bummed that he retired as a Blue Jay, but I get it. Why shouldn’t Doc retire as a Blue Jay? Phillies fans will always have the perfect game, the NLDS no hitter, and “funner.”